A love to remember
by Zero401
Summary: William Murdoch is the first officer of the grandest ship in the world but is she as unsinkable as they say?
1. Chapter 1

**So, this story is based on the ITV1 mini series of Titanic, but for anyone who hasn't seen it I will be putting in the scenes from the show. And please keep in mind that i haven't written a story since I left school which was like 5 years ago, so let's start praying and enjoy the show. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters and I don't own Titanic or Olympic, i'm just borrowing them.**

Monday, 2 April 1912

Murdoch was reaching for his cup of tea in the office room onboard the Titanic, when the captain turned to him and asked, "**Anything to report chief, anything we should know about before we begin the trials**?" after taking a sip of his tea, Murdoch thought for a moment before coming to a conclusion. "**Nothing** **yet, sir**".

The captain smiled happily "**Aye, good. How about you Mr Lightoller**?" Lightoller turned from his duties to report to the captain. "**We are taking men here in Belfast and then on in Southampton, no problems so far, sir**". The captain turned to David Blair "**Mr Blair**?" the young second officer smiled at the captain. "**Well if a second officer is allowed to complain, sir, the stoorage space is limited, i'm packing equipment all over the place**".

Lightoller and the captain chuckled. "**Well make sure someone knows why it is, we don't want to be caught short if you fall over board**". The captain joked. Murdoch, who had been listening, wanted to ask the captain something but didn't know quite how to put his question forward, so he decided to keep it plain and simple. "**Are we taking any measures against the anachists, sir**?" the captain blinked looking confused at his chief officer's question "**What**?"

"**These are dangerous times**" Murdoch said trying to explain further but to no avail as the captain still seemed to be confused over his question. "**I think what officer Murdoch means to say is, that a ship as famous as Titanic is an obvious target, sir**" Lightoller said quickly to back up his friend, Murdoch turned around to face Lightoller, giving him an thankful look.

The captain placed his tea on the table beside him and sighed "**Gentlemen, all white star liners carry guns and i don't think a bomb would do enough damage to take us down but i'm afraid that's all I can say to reassure you**" the officers nod in acceptance to his answer. The captains picks up his tea and turns to look at a big map, which is placed on the wall. "**Truth is man may sink us even if nature can't**" and with that the officers turn and start walking towards the bridge.

As Titanic headed out to the Irsih sea to begin her sea trials, Murdoch stood there inhaling the salty sea air and closed his eyes as he felt the cool breeze hit his face, when he opened them he found Captain Smith standing next to him. "**Begin the trials, chief**" the captain ordered with a smile on his face. "**Yes, sir**" Murdoch said without hesitation, keen to follow the order from the captain.

Murdoch started the trials by doing a 'crash stop' in which the engines are reversed from full ahead to full astern, bringing the ship to a stop, which Murdoch calculated took 3 minutes and 15 seconds. Other tests included her turning ability and her speeds, all in all the trials took over 12 hours to complete.

Titanic returned to Belfast at 7pm but unfortuantly for the crew there was no time to rest as they were schueled to leave for southampton within the hour. There was just enough time for Murdoch and the other officers to do their rounds, making sure that Titanic had everything she needed for her trip.

At last Titanic was ready to leave Belfast for the first – and last – time as she headed out for southampton. After a journey which lasted for 28 hours Titanic finally arrived at her destination at midnight, 4 April. Murdoch and the other officers did a final round before retiring for the night, having no idea of the nightmare that awaited them on this doomed ship.

**Yay. One chapter done! The bit about the sea trials wasn't actually in the program but i thought i'd give you some fun facts about Titanic. Btw the real plot in the story line won't actually come up until chapter 3 but i need you all to know the background stuff you see, so all this has a purpose**


	2. Chapter 2

**Ok so, I wanna get through these couple of chapters rather quickly so we can get to the main storyline, but as I said I don't know how popular this TV series was and I need people to know what happened to Murdoch at the beginning so they'll understand later what's going on, but enough of me babbling on.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything because if I did I wouldn't be writing this now would I?**

Tuesday, 9 April 1912

Captain Smith had called his three senior officers to his office. Murdoch had no idea why, but it seemed to be urgent and he could think of no problem involving the ship or the crew. He opened the office door and immediately his heart dropped, sitting at the table on the captain's right was Mr Wilde, who had been chief officer onboard Olympic. "**William**" Wilde said whilst nodded, Murdoch nodded back out of politeness "**Henry**".

"**Take a seat, Mr Murdoch**" the captain gestured to and empty seat on his left, as Murdoch sat down he noticed Lightoller sitting next to Wilde and Blair sitting next to himself, he also realised Lightoller looked extremely confused about something.

"**I'm afraid I still don't quite understand yet, sir**" Lightoller confessed as he started fiddling with his pencil. "**You're being very slow Mr Lightoller**" the captain stated plainly. Murdoch could see that Lightoller wanted to say something back but then thought better of it, so the captain continued, "**The Company has decided that Mr Wilde will replace Mr Murdoch as chief officer**" Captain Smith turned to face Murdoch, who in turn faced the captain in disbelief, what reason was there that would result in him getting demoted. But the captain continued to explain the situation "**Mr Murdoch will become first officer and you will become second"**. The captain said hoping that it would be the last time he had to explain it.

"**But, sir, we've already allocated the duties between us. Should we unravel all that when we're sailing in a few hours?**" Lightoller argued, whilst still fiddling with his pencil. Murdoch knew his friend had just stated a fair point and could see the frustration on the captain's face.

"**May I say something, sir?**" Wilde asked in a soft and calm voice, the captain waved his hand as a sign for Wilde to carry on. "**As you know I have served as chief for Captain Smith on Titanic's sister ship, Olympic. There is little difference between them and I believe it to be useful to have a captain and a chief who really know how the ship works**" the captain agreed with Wilde's statement "**Exactly**".

Murdoch could feel a twinge of anger in his veins, he couldn't believe this was the reason he was being demoted to first officer. "**But I've served on Olympic too, sir. I know how Titanic works**" Murdoch said annoyed but on the surface looking calm and professional. "**Well, I'm afraid there is nothing more to be said on the subject**" the captain said in frustration, giving his newly appointed first officer a stern look, to which Murdoch nodded out of acceptance and respect to not pushing the situation further as he knew it was not his place to challenge the captain. Murdoch looked down onto the table in disappointment, inside all he wanted to do was scream and walk out the door but the always present professional side of him told him to stay there, which he did in a daze until the sound of Lightoller's voice snapped him out of it.

"**So what now, sir?**" the captain slammed his pencil onto the table lightly, Murdoch could see that the captain didn't like this anymore than the officers. "**Has Blair replaced Pitman, Pitman, Boxhall and so on?**" Lightoller finished.

"**No. Mr Blair will leave the ship, here in Southampton, all remaining officers will remain in their present posts. Look, I'm sorry Blair, but you must understand, I can hardly countermand a Company order**" the captain explained.

"**No, of course not, sir**" Blair said almost sounding like he was going to cry. Murdoch truly felt sorry for the young lad; he knew how much Blair was looking forward to the voyage. "**Well, I'm sure they'll find you a new berth soon**" the captain said trying to cheer the boy up a bit.

"**Don't know what my mother will say, sir, she was so excited**" Blair said half jokingly. "**Well I hope one day, she'll be able to forgive us**" the captain said before dismissing his officers.

**Ok, one last chapter after this and the real story can begin. I haven't decided whether Murdoch will live or whether to do in real and have him die so since you're the ones who are reading this I've decided to let you decide Murdoch's fate in this story. I personally want him to live but I'm not the one reading this. And just so you know in the next chapter we find out who's gonna be Murdoch's love interest. Until next time. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey everyone, this is the last chapter with scenes from the TV show, after this it's all me. **

**Disclaimer: once again I don't own anything. I am the owner of nothingness.**

Tuesday, 9 April 1912

Murdoch walked out of the door fuming; he couldn't believe what just happened. Being demoted like that had stung him bad, so he decided to take a walk round the ship to cool off before his duties. He went down the first class staircase and entered the second class corridor, where he witnessed a man rudely bump into a young maid, which made her drop the towels she was holding and walked off without so much as an apology.

"**Charming**" Murdoch said annoyed at this man's rudeness, he bent down to help the young maid pick up the towels. "**Oh no, let me, sir**" the maid said before looking up to see who it was, she was shocked to see the first officer there, trying to help her. Murdoch smiled and nodded then walked past her to continue his walk but the maid wasn't ready to see him go, so quickly she thought of a question "**Will the ship be full, sir?**".

Murdoch turned around to face her "**First will be, there are still some places in second and third**" the maid nodded and turned back to pick up the towels, Murdoch found this maid intriguing and smiled "**What's your name?**" he enquired, his voice lightened with curiosity. The young maid stood up and turned around "**Annie Desmond, sir**" she said shyly, smiling back at him. Annie had always thought officers to be cocky and cold but this first officer was warm and charming, a true gentleman.

"**And your position?**" he asked, genuinely wanting to know the answer. "**Stewardess in second class, sir, and I look after the dining room for servants of the first class quarters**".

Murdoch chuckled slightly "**Who will all be as difficult as their employers**" he joked turning to continue walking, smiling as he did. "**That's not for me to say, sir**" Annie bantered back, smiling, earning her one last look at the handsome officer as he glanced back with a huge smile on his face before turning a corner at the end of the corridor.

After meeting the young stewardess, Murdoch no longer felt upset or angry, he actually felt rather cheered up and hoped he would get the chance of meeting Annie again.

**Ok, I know it's a short chapter but the next one will be longer and will contain no scenes from the TV show, so it will be all me, we'd better start praying. Till next time. Cheerio. **


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: Still don't own characters or Titanic.**

Wednesday, 10 April 1912

Murdoch woke up bright and early, today was the first day of Titanic's maiden voyage, so he got up, polished his shoes, straightened his tie and brushed off his jacket after all he wanted to look his best and nothing less for the grandest ship in the world, and with the he left his room and set off to the bridge.

As he entered the bridge, he stood to attention awaiting orders from the captain, until Lightoller approached him. "**William, just the man I've been searching for**" Lightoller smiled naughtily at his best friend. Murdoch rolled his eyes, already knowing that whatever he was about to hear, he wouldn't like it. "**And why is that, Lights?**" Murdoch asked, dreading the answer.

"**The captain has ordered us to see that the first class passengers get on the ship alright**" Murdoch closed his eyes and sighed heavily "**Bloody hell**" he swore under his breath, which caused Lightoller to burst out laughing, for he too hated doing this task as much as Murdoch but seeing his friend get frustrated over it actually made him feel slightly better. "**Come on,**" Murdoch said hopelessly "**The sooner we get this done, the more intact we'll be when we next enter this bridge**" Murdoch suddenly came out of his mood and had a huge grin on his face "**And this time don't insult the ladies by saying they look just like the animal in which their fur coat is made of**"

Lightoller chuckled "**You know me, Will, I'm all for the beauty of Mother Nature's creatures, but i prefer to see that beauty on the animal, not the lady**" Lightoller made an innocent face at Murdoch. "**Unfortunately I do know you Charles, and I mean it no insulting the ladies, no jokes and no asking for tips**"Murdoch gave Lightoller a stern look before going off to attend to the first class passengers. "**Spoil-sport**" Lightoller said under his breath, before quickly walking away encase his superior officer had heard him.

Murdoch approached the first class passengers, welcoming them onboard, though to be honest he didn't know why he was bothering, not a single one acknowledge him, to them it was as if he wasn't even there. When the task was finally over, the doors were closed and he could finally return to the bridge, he silently thanked god for getting him through that nightmare as he made his way back. Whilst he was walking through second class he noticed the young stewardess, Annie. She seemed to be struggling with a heavy suitcase; he smiled brightly and walked over to her. "**Here let me help you with that, Miss Desmond**" she jumped, slightly startled by his voice "**Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you**" Murdoch apologised quickly.

"**It's quite alright, sir, but surely you have important duties to attend to. I wouldn't want to get you into trouble**" Annie blushed; she couldn't believe this officer wanted to help her, again. "**Your right of course, I do have many important duties, like helping a young woman such as yourself when she's in distress**" Murdoch bent down to lift the suitcase which he did so with ease. Annie secretly admired his strength and looked him in the eyes; she noticed for the first time that his eyes were blue and that they were filled with warmth, kindness and something else, perhaps sadness, Annie couldn't figure out what it was that could make this kind man seem sad.

"**So...were you going anywhere with these bags?**" Murdoch asked curiously, which snapped Annie out of her thoughts, making her realise she was staring at him, immediately causing her to blush before nodding "**This way, sir**" she quickly said, leading him to the passengers room. "**William**" Murdoch stated plainly, Annie stopped and turned around to face him "**Pardon, sir**"

"**William McMaster Murdoch, at your service**" he bowed slightly, which caused Annie to giggle and curtsy back "**It's nice to meet you Mr William McMaster Murdoch, my knight in shining armour**" Annie immediately regretted saying those words, it seemed to her that she was deliberately trying to embarrass herself in front of this man. "**This way**" Annie said before Murdoch had the chance to say anything else.

When they finally reached the door, Annie knocked, a man no older than Murdoch answered "**Where the hell have you been? I've been waiting for my luggage for far too long, miss**" the man said in a loud, but just as Annie was about to explain, she heard a familiar Scottish voice. "**I'm afraid that's my fault, sir. You see, Miss Desmond here was helping me settle the first class passengers**" the man nodded and closed the door after Murdoch had given him the bags.

"**Thank you**" Annie said gratefully. Murdoch smiled and shrugged "**Well, what are knights in shining armour for?**" Annie smiled, she didn't know what was happening, she was developing feelings for this man, and she felt safe and protected in his company. Murdoch cleared his throat "**Perhaps, Miss Desmond, you would like to accompany me onto the deck**" Murdoch asked hoping she would agree.

"**And why is that, Mr Murdoch?**" she asked, wondering what he was up to. "**To say a proper goodbye to England and so I may spend more time with you**" Annie was completely surprise of that last part, she tried to hide the blush that was threatening to show itself but no matter how hard she tried she couldn't hide the huge smile that had formed on her lips. "**On one condition you must call me Annie**" she bargained, Murdoch looked as though he was trying to make up his mind, before smiling and offering her his arm "**Deal**" and with that she wrapped her arm around his and they both ventured their way up to the deck.

They arrived on the officer's promenade, Murdoch knew that Annie shouldn't really be there but figured everyone would be too busy to care. They stared out towards the millions of people waving, Annie noticed that their arms were still linked; anyone looking towards the ship might have thought they were a couple. Titanic's propellers started and the ship began to move.

Annie jumped as she heard something snap and her heart stopped when she saw what it was, "**William**" she said urgently as she shook his arm, he looked at Annie and noticed she was pointing to something across from the Titanic; it was another, much smaller ship. A ship that had snapped its mooring line and was on a collision course with Titanic.

**You all know how it is, you're standing there on a ship with a guy you like, things are going well and the next thing you know, another ship is coming straight towards you, we've all been there. Please review, tell me what you think.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I don't own Titanic nor the passengers onboard her. **

Wednesday, 10 April 1912

Murdoch wasted no time and ran as fast as he could to the bridge, before coming face to face with the captain. "**Mr Murdoch, where have you...**" "**There's a ship, sir, coming towards us**" Murdoch interrupted, pointing towards the smaller ship, he knew it wasn't proper of him to interrupt the captain but there wasn't any time to answer his questions. The captain immediately ordered "**Full astern**".

Murdoch returned to Annie's side, where they both stared helplessly at the oncoming ship, Murdoch could feel the cold sweat on the back of his neck, he knew the smaller ship would sustain more damage than the Titanic, but whatever little damage Titanic would receive would surely delay the start of her maiden voyage, which Murdoch knew Mr Ismay would not be pleased to learn about.

Just as it seemed for certain that the two ships would collide, a tugboat manages to tie a mooring line around the smaller liner and bring it back to the dock. Murdoch released the breath, he realised he was holding "**That was close**" he said to no one in particular. "**Well done Mr Murdoch that was quick thinking**". The captain said proudly placing his hand on Murdoch's shoulder. "**Actually, sir, it's Miss Desmond we have to thank, she's the one who spotted the ship**" Murdoch pushed Annie towards the captain slightly; he chuckled when he saw Annie blush.

"**Well I congratulate you both, the two of you shall be rewarded**" the captain stood there, thinking of some way to show his appreciation. "**There's no need, Captain**" Annie said nervously, she couldn't believe she was in the presence of the captain, let alone talking to him. "**Nonsense Miss Desmond. I know just the thing; the two of you shall accompany me as my guests to dinner**". Murdochsmiled and nodded "**Thank you, sir**" before nudging Annie lightly to get her out of her daydream like state "**Yes, thank you, sir**" Annie repeated before the captain turned around and walked to the bridge.

Murdoch turned back to Annie; she looked dazed and stunned which caused him to chuckle "**Did that really just happen? The** **captain just invited me to dinner?**" she asked weakly, she was in total disbelief. "**I have to say, you do work fast, Miss Desmond. Not even an hour into the first day of the voyage and your already in the captain's good books, and now I'm afraid I must be on my way otherwise I might be thrown out of that exclusive club**" Murdoch joked, he was growing very fond of her, but unfortunately knew nothing could happen between them.

"**Quite right, Mr Murdoch. I look forward to seeing you at dinner tonight**" she offered her hand to shake his own but instead he guided her hand to his lips, placing a on her hand lightly, which sent shivers down her spine and made her knees go weak. "**Until then, Annie**" he noticed she looked shocked that he actually had used her first name, but he made her a deal and he didn't intend to break it, so with one last smile he turned and walked back onto the bridge, leaving Annie standing there, staring at his back.

Annie suddenly felt rather anxious, she really wanted to impress William tonight, though she wasn't entirely sure why, after all she'd only met him yesterday but she felt so drawn to him and he was so kind and gentle. Her mother had warned her about sailors, telling her stories about officers who befriended women only to get them into their beds, but her mother had also told her stories about love at first sight and about people finding the person who shared half of their soul. Annie hoped that William was from those stories where the handsome prince rescues the beautiful princess, they fall deeply in love and have a happy ending, and Annie hoped William was her handsome prince.

Annie shook her head to wake herself from her daydream, what was she thinking, he's the first officer whilst she was just a stewardess, she was making his kindness into something more than what it was, but she couldn't help but hope it was something more. She turned around to walk down to second class, wondering what tonight would bring.

**I'm like 2 chapters ahead of this one and I can say for certain that I have serious writers block. Anyway hoped you enjoyed. Till next time. **


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: still the same as last time**

Wednesday, 10 April 1912

Annie was getting really nervous, it was getting closer and closer to dinner, and soon she would be dining with some of the wealthiest people in the world as well as the captain and with the man who made her most nervous of all, William Murdoch. She was so worried that she was going to embarrass herself in front of him or even worse she was scared that she would embarrass him. She continued to look in her small mirror in her room, making sure she looked presentable, when she jumped as she heard a knock on the door, "**Who's this?**" she asked herself, she was completely surprised to see a certain first officer when she opened her door. "**William, what are you doing here?**" she asked curiously, whilst noticing that he was wearing a newly pressed uniform and of course noticing how handsome and charming he looked.

"**Well if you'll allow me, I've come to escort you to dinner**" Murdoch said smiling at her "**But how did you know where my room was?**" Annie asked. "**I have my ways, now Annie, if you'll do me the honour**" Murdoch offered her his arm, which she accepted, closing the door behind her. As they walked towards the first class dining room, Murdoch stole glances towards Annie "**If you don't mind me saying, Annie, you look absolutely beautiful**" Murdoch said honestly making Annie blush "**Thank you William, but I'm sure you must say that to all the women**" Annie said jokingly, she thought that he was just being polite to her.

Murdoch looked down, she noticed he looked rather sad "**There are no other women, Miss Desmond; unfortunately I think my only love in this life will be the sea, for no woman would want to share her husband, not even with the sea**". Murdoch said sadly, he had always wanted to fall in love, get married and perhaps even start a family but he knew his career wouldn't allow it, so he accepted his choice by remaining on the sea instead of settling down. Annie wanted to comfort him but wasn't sure how, so she gave his arm a light squeeze which made him smile and made her heart warm by knowing that his smile was because of her.

They arrived at the restaurant and Annie suddenly became nervous again, which Murdoch noticed and decided it was his turn to comfort her by squeezing her arm, which made her look at him in the eyes, he smiled and gave her a wink to reassure her, making her smile in return. Murdoch guided her towards the captain's table, he knew Annie was nervous and although he would never admit it or show it, he too was nervous, he may have 16 years of experience about sailing but he rarely mingled with passengers. They approached the captain, who smiled towards them "**Miss Desmond**" the captain bowed his head slightly "**Captain Smith**" Annie gestured back "**Officer Murdoch**" the captain turned to Murdoch "**Captain**" Murdoch saluted respectfully before the captain turned to see to his other guest, Annie laughed slightly "**What?**" Murdoch asked, her laughter causing him to chuckle. "**It's just everyone is so formal and professional all the time, doesn't anyone ever take a break?**" Murdoch looked confused "**A break? I'm afraid, Miss Desmond, I have never heard of the word**" Murdoch joked causing Annie to laugh louder, as he pulled out a chair for her before taking his own seat next to her.

Throughout dinner Annie rarely spoke as it didn't seem right; as she listened to the first class passengers talk and by her understanding their favourite subject was money, so since she didn't have any she thought it best that she kept quiet. The only conversation she was interested in was when Mr Andrews was talking about the Titanic but what she enjoyed most of all was spending the evening with William, she kept glancing at him trying to be as discreetly as she could and noticed that he was doing the same thing. She also noticed that he rarely spoke during dinner; he only spoke up if the captain asked him a question.

"**Did everything go smoothly at Cherbourg?**" Annie asked William as he walked her back to her room "**Yes surprisingly so**" Murdoch grinned, shaking his head slightly "**Surprisingly?**" Annie questioned "**Yes, the second officer has, shall we say, a knack for accidently offending people**" Murdoch laughed causing Annie to giggle.

They arrived at Annie's door, where she spun around to say goodnight, not knowing how close he was behind her as they came face to face, she could even feel his hot breath on her face. They both stood there awkwardly for a moment before Murdoch closed the gap between them and placed a light kiss against her lips causing Annie's heart to pound against her chest, she kissed him back but before she could respond deeper, he stepped back. He looked her in the eye, breathing heavily "**I must go**" Murdoch said in almost a whisper before walking hastily down the corridor.

Annie didn't have time to say anything as he was already out of sight, what had just happened? Why did he leave in such a hurry? After all he was the one who kissed her, was he worried that he had offended her? But surely he had felt her kiss him back. Annie didn't know what to think, she just hoped he wouldn't stay away from her for the rest of the voyage.

As Murdoch ventured up to the bridge, he was mentally scolding himself for being so stupid, what was he thinking? He admitted to himself that he had grown feelings for her, in the short amount of time since he met her, but knew nothing could ever come from them and admitting his feelings, knowing that hurt him too much. Perhaps it would be best for both of them if he just kept away Annie.

**So that's another chapter, all over and done with. Till next time.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: nope, still don't own anything**

Thursday, 11 April 1912

It was 11:30am and Titanic had arrived at the Cork Harbour on the south coast of Ireland, but as the docks were not suitable for ships her size, she was receiving her passengers from tenders. Murdoch stood outside the bridge, his hands behind his back, the sky was cloudy but it was a warm day. He stood there still thinking about that kiss, he had shared with Annie, until Lightoller appeared next to him. "**So what happened last night?**" Lights asked curiously which made Murdoch turn around fast with a slight guilty look on his face "**What makes you think anything happened last night?**" Murdoch said desperately, thinking that his friend had somehow found out what had happened between him and Annie. "**I only meant what happened at dinner?**" Lights held his hands up in defence but now he was more curious at what had Murdoch in a knot "**Nothing much, bit of a bore really**" Murdoch lied, he just hoped that Lights believed him, he didn't want to talk about his situation to anyone especially his best friend. "**Well of course it was boring, I wasn't there to tell any of my jokes**" Lightoller said laughing but he noticed Murdoch's lips didn't even twitch "**Ok, come on, you can't fool me Will, something obviously happened last night, you've been in a foul mood ever since you got back, so what's bothering you?**".

"**You're bothering me, lights**" Murdoch stated plainly, still with no smile on his face "**That hurts William**" Lights put his hand over his heart "**Here I am, doing my duty as a friend, a brother even, and you just chuck it back in my face**" Lightoller turned his back to Murdoch dramatically, "**Look, Lights, I'm sorry**" Murdoch said softly placing his hand on Lights shoulder, to which Lights shrugged it off and stepped forward "**Don't, I'm bleeding**" Lights said sarcastically, sounding hurt. Murdoch sighed "**Last night I escorted Miss Desmond back to her room, you know, the young stewardess I told you about, who spotted the SS New York and I kissed her**" Murdoch confessed still looking at Lights back but if he could of seen Lights face he would see that he was smiling. Lightoller knew exactly what buttons to press when it came to Murdoch.

"**So, why are you upset?**" Lights asked as he turned back to face Murdoch, he was confused as to why this had made Murdoch so upset "**Because it was wrong of me to do so, what if the captain was to find out? She could lose her job, I could lose my job**" Murdoch explained "**Do you love her?**" Murdoch's eyes widened at the question "**What?**" Murdoch's heart stopped, he had to quickly think of an answer Lights would believe. "**Do you love her?**" Lightoller repeated a little louder "**It's not appropriate for me to have feelings towards her**" Lightoller smiled **"Well I didn't hear a 'no' anywhere in that sentence"** Murdoch looked Lightoller deep in the eye, "**No**" Murdoch tried to lie as convincingly as he could "**No use trying to lie to me, Will, I've notice, over the years, that you do this weird thing with your eyes. You should probably visit the medic and get it seen to**" Lightoller joked but still not getting a response from Murdoch, who turned around to stare at the bow whilst he sighed.

"**Does she feel the same way about you?**" Lights asked "**I don't know, but she did kiss me back**" Murdoch remembered the kiss they had shared, it was then that Lights noticed he was slightly grinning. "**Well who could resist a Scotsman like you, so you haven't told her the way you feel about her?**" Murdoch shook his head "**And she's not going to find out, I'm going to stay away from her for the rest of the voyage**" Lightoller sighed "**But William..**." Lights started "**There are no buts, Lights. I've made up my mind, and that's that**" Murdoch walked off into the wheel house, "**Must I do everything myself**" Lights said to himself before venturing the decks to find the young stewardess.

**A little male bonding there, well until Murdoch walked off. Till next time.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: same as before.**

Thursday, 11 April 1912

Annie was making the beds for passengers in the second class quarters; she was willing to do anything as long as it kept her mind of William. She gathered up the dirty sheets and walked out of the room, bumping into something solid. She looked up to see an officer's uniform, she continued to look up hoping she wouldn't see William and luckily it wasn't.

"**I'm sorry, Miss**" Lightoller said.

"**It's quite alright, sir**" Annie said, continuing down the corridor.

"**Wait Miss, you wouldn't happen to be Miss Desmond?**" Annie turned around, had William told this officer about her and what had happened? Did they laugh about her behind her back? Or what if William had been hurt and was asking for her.

"**Yes I am, sir**" Annie said wanting to know what this officer was up to.

"**Thank God. I've been up and down this ship like a man possessed, asking every stewardess their name. Speaking of names, where are my manners? Second Officer Charles Lightoller, but please call me Lights**"he bowed his head slightly.

"**Well then, you must call me Annie, is William alright?**"

Lights shook his head "**I'm afraid not, Annie. You see, William doesn't really know how to act around women and last night he panicked after, you know, what happened**"

Annie felt slightly angry "**He told you what happened?**"

Lightoller made a face "**Well, I had to beat it out of him first. You know, William really does have feelings for you, he was just scared and he feels terrible about leaving you like that**"

Annie felt a mix of emotions; she felt angry that William had walked away and told Lights about what had happened between them but she was also happy to learn that William had feelings for her.

"**Well, how do you think I feel?**" Annie argued.

"**Yeah, but you're a woman, aren't you, you're stronger than William**" Annie laughed along with Lights "**He says he wants to meet you tonight, seven o'clock, at lifeboat seven.**"

"**I can't, I've got duties**" Annie said disappointedly.

"**You leave that to me, Annie**" Lights smiled and started to walk away to find Murdoch. 

Annie suddenly felt butterflies in her stomach, she was already anxious at the thought of seeing William again, especially after last night's invents. Annie continued with her errands, whilst wondering what might happen tonight.

It was 6:45pm; Murdoch was in the officer's mess hall, enjoying a cup of tea. Lights walked through the door and saw Murdoch sitting there by himself "**What you sulking about, grumpy?**" Lights joked, getting himself a cup of tea.

"**Please Lights; I'm not in the mood for your charms today**" Murdoch stared into his cup, looking like he had lost all hope.

"**Wow, you really have got it bad, haven't you?**" Lights sat opposite Murdoch, taking a sip of his tea. "**The davits on boat seven looked like it was broken**"

"**Broken? What do you mean broken?**" Murdoch looked up at Lights with a questioning look on his face.

"**Well, I mean they look broken, come on, I'll give you a hand at fixing them**" Lights smiled as he stood up and walked the door "**Come on then, sulky**"

Murdoch sighed loudly before getting up and followed Lights out of the door. As they approached boat seven Murdoch noticed a figure standing next to it, but he couldn't make out who it was, until they were a few feet away and it was too late to back away.

"**Annie, fancy seeing you here**" Lights said, pretending to be surprised.

"**Yeah, fancy that**" Murdoch turned to face Lights, now knowing he had been set up.

"**Oh, I just remembered, I promised Mr Wilde that I would help him with...something**" Lights said, giving Murdoch a nudge towards Annie before quickly walking off.

Murdoch suddenly felt very nervous, he didn't know what to say or what to do, he slowly walked up to her and placed his hands on the railings. "**I must apologise for walking off last night, Annie**"

"**It's quite alright, I'm sure you must have had duties to attend to**" Annie said, looking out onto the ocean.

"**That still doesn't excuse my actions. There's something I want to say and it's quite delicate, you see I haven't had much experience with women and I really want to get to know you, if you'll let me**" Murdoch said nervously, looking at her the whole time, he felt his heart pound against his chest.

Annie smiled "**You can take me to breakfast tomorrow at six and I'll tell you everything you wish to know. But unfortunately now I must attend to my ladies in second class**"

"**I look forward to it, Annie**" Murdoch smiled widely.

Annie reached up and kissed his cheek before walking back to second class. Murdoch stood there and placed his hand on his cheek, where she had kissed him. He didn't realise it but he had a huge smile on his face. Then he felt someone close behind him.

"**You love her, you want to kiss her, you want to hold her**" Murdoch heard Lights sing in his ear.

Murdoch turned around "**You git**" Murdoch said laughing.

"**You're very welcome**, **William**" Lights said chuckling as the two friends walked back to the bridge.


	9. Chapter 9

**I'd like to thank EredLuin and thomas-andrews for your reviews; I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

**Disclaimer: still the same.**

Friday, 12 April 1912

Murdoch woke at 5:15am; he jumped straight out of bed knowing he would meet Annie for breakfast in forty five minutes. Murdoch had a quick wash and shave before picking out a fresh clean uniform from his wardrobe. After he felt that he looked presentable he put on his officer's cap and walked out his door and ventured towards Annie's cabin.

Annie was changing into her maid uniform after having a wash. She was becoming very anxious about this morning's breakfast with William, she had promised to tell him everything he wished to know about her. She jumped slightly when she heard a knock on the door, and then smiled widely as she realised, she knew who it was.

"**Good morning, William**" Annie greeted when she opened the door to him.

"**Good morning, Annie. Are you hungry?**" Murdoch asked with a smile on his face.

"**Starving**" Annie walked out of her door and took Murdoch's offered arm.

They both entered the crew's mess hall, gathering a few pieces of toast and marmalade. They settled down at an empty table.

Annie suddenly felt rather nervous "**I promised I would tell you about my life**" she suddenly blurted out.

"**So you did**" Murdoch smiled, causing Annie's heart to skip a beat.

"**Well, I was born in London; my mother died giving birth to me so it was just me and my father. He was a barber; I used to seat in the corner and watch him make the men look all fancy. He never remarried after my mother; I think he thought it was a betrayal to her memory. So it was just him and me until I was fourteen when he died from pneumonia, so I moved to my aunt's and uncle's farm in the countryside. I was only there for two years before getting a job as a stewardess for white star liners. Working on various ships for seven years and here I am now**" Annie finished, looking up at William who looked as though he had made closed attention to every detail of her life.

"**I'm sorry for your lose**" he said sadly, covering her hand with his.

Annie smiled at the touch of his hand "**Thank you. It's nice to be able to talk to someone about it**"

"**Well, you can tell me anything you like**" Murdoch said softly.

"**So, what about yourself?**" Annie asked curiously.

"**I was born and raised in Dalbeattie, my grandfather and his brothers were sailors, my father and his brothers are sailors so I guess it was only natural that I also became one. In 1899 I served in the royal navy and was trained as a lieutenant qualifying to become a white star line officer. I have an older sister, a younger brother and a younger sister. In 1906 my older brother died of consumption, so I returned to Scotland for a few months before returning to the sea. I served on Olympic for a year before being appointed as Titanic's Chief Officer**" William finished.

"**Chief Officer?**" Annie questioned

"**Yes, a few hours before we set sailed I was demoted to First Officer and Lights got demoted to Second Officer**"

"**Why?**" Annie asked curiously.

"**Because the company and the Captain thought it be a good idea to have someone who had more experience and so they brought Mr Wilde onboard, he was my Chief Officer on Olympic**" William said distastefully.

"**Well, that seems rather unfair**"Annie said, as she looked down and noticed their hands were still interlaced.

"**Yes but there's no point in crying over spilt milk**" Murdoch smiled half heartedly.

Annie squeezed his hand gently to cheer him up and it seemed to work, as he squeezed her hand back and smiled. She absolutely loved his smile; it was warm and gentle, seeing his smile made her happy beyond words. Before they could say anything else Lights entered the room and upon seeing him William immediately removed his hand from hers. She could understand why, he wanted to remain professional among his fellow officers, but at the same time she wanted to feel courted.

"**So when's the wedding?**" Lights laughed causing Annie to giggle.

"**Shut up, Lights**" William said, not looking too impressed.

Lights put his hands up in defence before going to make himself a cup of tea.

"**He was only joking, William**" Annie chuckled.

"**I've known Lights for a number of years now, I know when he's joking and when he's not and believe me he weren't joking**"

Lights returned back to the table, with a cup of tea in his hand and sat next to William.

"**You alright, Annie?**" Lights asked politely.

"**Fine, thank you Lights. What of yourself?**"

"**Busy as always. I've forgotten what it's like to fall asleep in a bed**" Lights joked causing Annie to giggle.

"**So, neither one of you have told me how you two met**" Annie said curiously.

"**We met on the SS Medic in 1900, I was new to the whole being an officer thing and so William was put in charge of my well being**"

"**Actually I think it was more the well being of the others who were around you**" Murdoch chuckled.

"**And from that day we've been best friends ever since**" Lights finished.

"**You've been best friends for twelve years; I've bet you've noticed changes in each other since that first encounter**"

"**No, he's still the same grumpy, stubborn Scotsman I met all those years ago**"

"**And your still the same annoying, irresponsible man I met all those years ago**"

Annie had to laugh at their banter; they were both acting like little boys instead of full grown men.

"**Well, I must go attend to my ladies in second class**" Annie said regrettably, she wanted nothing more but to spend more time with William, but at the same time she didn't want to get the sack if she did then she would never see him. As she stood up, so did the two men out of respect.

"**Will I see you later?**" William asked her quickly before elbowing Lights in the ribs because of the smirk on his face.

"**I get off at six for tea**" Annie smiled, trying to hold in a laugh as Lights rubbed the place where William had elbowed him.

William nodded before Annie walked off to second class. "**So...**" Lights said waiting for William to tell him all the gossip.

"**So...?**" William asked confusingly.

"**Yeah, how far have you two got?**" Lights asked excitingly.

"**I'm going to take things slowly with her; I don't want to push her into anything she doesn't want to do**"

"**Shut up you tart. It's obvious by the way she looks at you that she has feelings for you and besides weren't you the one who told me life's too short? Listen next time you see her you tell her how you feel**"

"**I don't know, Lights**"

"**Well I do know, just do it. You'll thank me for it later**"

William sighed deeply; he knew Lights wouldn't leave him alone unless he agreed to do it "**I'll think about it, Lights**"

**Hoped you enjoyed, till next time.**


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